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Pope Francis in the Sistine Chapel,
Last Judgement by Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (1475-1564),
Fresco,
Executed between 1536–1541
© Photo Courtesy of Vatican News |
It was very early on the first day of the week and still dark, when Mary of Magdala came to the tomb. She saw that the stone had been moved away from the tomb and came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved. ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb’ she said ‘and we don’t know where they have put him.’
So Peter set out with the other disciple to go to the tomb. They ran together, but the other disciple, running faster than Peter, reached the tomb first; he bent down and saw the linen cloths lying on the ground, but did not go in. Simon Peter who was following now came up, went right into the tomb, saw the linen cloths on the ground, and also the cloth that had been over his head; this was not with the linen cloths but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in; he saw and he believed. Till this moment they had failed to understand the teaching of scripture, that he must rise from the dead. |
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| | Reflection on the Photograph of Pope Francis
For many of us, today will not be like any Easter Sunday we have ever celebrated before. Confined to our houses, we will have to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus within the intimacy of our own homes. Whilst the purpose of life is to pursue and try to live in an intimate relationship with God, our human nature steers us off course almost every day. I think after the Corona virus crisis is over, we will all be talking about ‘life before’ and ‘life after’ the virus. This virus is a seismic event. I pray, for today, that we may have a day of intimacy with Christ like never before, with no distractions and no hesitations.
Each person’s experience of intimacy with God is unique. For me, art and beauty have always played a major role in unleashing this closeness to God in my heart, inspiring my dreams, revealing God’s powers and nurturing my love for Him. I therefore love writing these daily emails, as writing them directly nurtures my spiritual life. I thank you for reading them. Our photograph today shows Pope Francis standing in front of Michelangelo’s Risen Christ as part of the Last Judgement. Pope Francis loves art, the Via Pulchritudinis (the Way of Beauty). When being interviewed about art, Pope Francis said: “Besides being a credible witness to the beauty of manmade things, art is an instrument of evangelisation. For example, take the Sistine Chapel. What did Michelangelo create? A work of evangelisation, of course.” Pope Francis continues: “Michelangelo conceived the Sistine Chapel as one enormous ‘Spiritual History of Humanity’ … which perpetuates the juxtaposition between man, the sinner, and his continuous insatiable need for divine compassion"…
I wish you all a very happy Easter, even if for many of us it will be hard celebrating this foundational day of our Christian faith confined to our own homes. May we have an intimacy with Christ like no Easter before… Christ is risen, and so will we rise out of the ashes of the current crisis.
by Patrick van der Vorst
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